Businesses from restaurants to health care need this election

Industries of all kinds need the election to work for them, infamous right-wing hoaxers face felony charges, and California becomes a champion ally.

But first, here’s your president-has-COVID week in review, in Haiku.

It’s hard to believe
that the fate of the world seems
to hinge on a few small

things: Like kindness and
regard, respect, a thought spared
the less fortunate.

There by the grace of
a mask go any of us!
A small thing looming

large in the time of
COVID. Well, we shrug, at least
he’s white. With a doctor.

High risk, with a twist.
At least we have a few small things,
like each other

Wishing you a collectively healthy weekend and a speedy recovery to anyone impacted by COVID. Take some time to go outside and breathe, if you can.

Ellen McGirt
@ellmcgirt
Ellen.McGirt@fortune.com

On Point

What does business need from the election besides COVID-free candidates you ask? Fortune has you covered with this comprehensive package that explores the needs of constituents like working parents, the unbanked, unions, and low-wage workers, along with industry sectors like Silicon Valley, Wall Street and the health care.
Fortune

Two notorious right-wing hoaxers face felony charges for voter intimidation Jacob Wohl, 22, and Jack Burkman, 54, are in serious trouble for a robo-call scheme targeting residents in Black areas in Detroit and another cities that falsely warned residents that voting by mail in the presidential election could lead to things like debt collection, forced vaccination and possibly arrest. They face four felony charges, including conspiring to intimidate voters in violation of election law and using a computer to commit crimes. The men could face arrest and extradition if they do not voluntarily travel to Michigan to face charges, authorities say. Vile.
AP

California, the ally state, part one This week, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation requiring public companies domiciled in California to diversify their boards racially, ethnically, and in terms of sexual and gender identity starting next year. By the end of 2021, at least one board member must come from an underrepresented demographic; by 2022, companies of significant size must have at least two or three. California State Assemblyman Chris Holden coauthored the legislation. “This is a win-win as ethnically diverse boards have shown to outperform those that lack diversity," he said in a statement.
CNN

California, the ally state, part two Then, on the same dang day, California became the first state to pass legislation that would pave the way for Black residents and descendants of slaves to receive reparation payments. While the legislation does not commit to a payment scheme, it does establish a nine-person task force that will study the impact of enslavement on people in California. It will also offer specific recommendations on the form and scope of any reparations offered. The legislation was authored by Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, PhD, who serves San Diego’s District 79, and who chairs the California Legislative Black Caucus.

On Background

The Proud Boys, an explainer The ADL has a good one about the group, which was started by Vice Media co-founder Gavin McInnes, to give voice to an odd mix of right-wing, male grievance, and described as violent, nationalistic, Islamophobic, transphobic and misogynistic — and though not officially white supremacist, that’s not always how things play out. “In reality, the Proud Boys bear many of the hallmarks of a gang, and its members have taken part in multiple acts of brutal violence and intimidation.”
ADL

Yes, you are the asshole Writer Jessica Valenti has done the world a service by digging into the AITA forum on Reddit, an advice forum in which people post their response to real world conflict that almost always involves their romantic partners, and then ask the existential question: Hey, am I crazy? Am I the asshole here? What typically follows is a disturbing look at a toxic male culture run amok. “What makes AITA such a special look into gender dynamics is that the men who describe awful scenarios truly don’t believe they’ve done anything wrong,” she writes. “Sexism has fully lulled them into a sense of moral superiority that blinds them to their own explicitly terrible behavior.” Come for the misogyny, stay for the not-so-subtle racism.
Gen

There was a moment when we started fighting about politics on television If you want to understand what started the nasty, counterpunching debate dynamic that is now commonplace on the evening news and the internet— pre-trolls, even — you’ll need to go back to 1968, when cash-strapped ABC, then stuck in third place, hired conservative William F. Buckley, Jr. and the liberal Gore Vidal to participate in ten debates on nightly television. Best of Enemies, is a truly astonishing documentary about the debates, and reveals the actual moment when civility went out the window and television vitriol in service of deeply rooted ideological views, became good business.
Best of Enemies

raceAhead is edited by Aric Jenkins.